


New Life

by Dark_Mage_of_Ylisse



Category: Five Nights at Freddy's
Genre: Alcohol, Angst, Bisexuality, Developing Relationship, Existential Angst, F/M, Family, Fluff, Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria Simulator | Five Nights at Freddy's 6, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Healing, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Pizza, Rebuilding, Road Trips, Sharing a Bed, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-09
Updated: 2020-09-04
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:35:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 7,826
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24621709
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dark_Mage_of_Ylisse/pseuds/Dark_Mage_of_Ylisse
Summary: After the burning of the so called final Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, Michael Afton and Charlotte Emily are left behind with the weights of their father's legacies on their shoulders. Desiring to create where his father destroyed, Michael decides to breathe some new life into the dead franchise. Charlie, desperate for a purpose in life, helps in the creation of their new location, and new happiness.
Relationships: Michael Afton/Charlotte "Charlie" Emily, Other Relationship Tags to Be Added
Comments: 25
Kudos: 115





	1. Chapter 1

"Crying over her isn't going to bring her back, you know."

"I know, it's just... I miss her. Even after all of this, I miss her so much... When we were little kids, she was so excited to grow up, said she wanted to explore the world with me."

Charlie Emily sighed as she sat next to Michael Afton, taking his bony, ice cold hand into her soft yet synthetic one. "I know."

He looked at her, with his thin face and slightly sunken eyes, there was only so much he could hide, being little more than an empty husk of a person. His breath sometimes gave it away if he forgot to brush his teeth extremely well, along with being so skinny that his ribs were always on display, while his skin had gone mostly back to normal, he was still so pale, always cold as ice with purple lips and dark circles under his eyes. If you knew, it was a bit obvious, if you didn't, you would probably suggest he go to the hospital. 

He didn't need to eat or drink like Charlie did, though he did need sleep. The only organs he said had left after the scooping were his brain and lungs. Though he claimed that sometimes he could faintly feel a thumping in his chest. Perhaps he still had his heart, even if it was hidden.

Maybe Ennard had left something behind.

That, or even Michael himself had fallen victim to his father's experiments with trying to cheat death. He did say that some of his memories were blurred.

The two sat in pure silence together on the cliffside, watching the sun sink down behind the mountains, small blades of grass poking up between their dead or artificial fingers. Gravestones sat behind them, each carved by her father with the names of the tiny lives that William Afton had snuffed out.

Charlie and Michael made sure to maintain the graves every day, and each time it broke her heart as she memorized every detail. Every date, name, and what animatronic they had most likely become thanks to William's notes. Only a single one of those kids had even broken double digits before their lives were snatched away. Elizabeth. 

They had 2 special ones as well. The Puppet/Lefty, and Circus Baby.

Charlotte Emily.

Elizabeth Afton.

They stayed here, tending to the graveyard, watching the sun, or just staying in the house her father had left for her. Neither dared go into the workshop, not yet. They hadn't even discussed what to do yet with the old building that William had left for Michael. It had been some kind of warehouse for robotics, not his place for experiments, so at least they wouldn't have to search for any more dead kids.

"Mike..." Charlie muttered, feeling his fingers twitch. "Is everything okay?"

"I went to it." He looked far out at the ocean, hand clenched so tightly around something in his free hand that his knuckles had turned a bluish purple. "The old remains."

She tilted her head, staring at her companion suspiciously. "Of...?"

"Circus Baby's Pizza World." He answered, holding out his hand. "I found them. Only took one, but I stashed the others away, can go back if I want. I just, I had to take her with me."

Her eyes widened as she stared at him. "Michael, is that...?" She asked as he opened his other hand. 

Within his pale hand was a single computer chip. "Charlie, it's her."


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Michael, maybe don't tell your roommate that you have the thing that your dead little sister haunts.
> 
> Also, for anyone wondering, this takes place post FFPS, but with the events of VR and AR having never happened. That does not however, mean that characters from those games won't appear.

"Are you out of your mind?!" Charlie hissed, staring at the chip in Michael's hand. "How many of these are there?! There's probably fucking Remnant on them!" The brunette shouted, seething at him. "All my father's work to fix this, the big fire, his death, is it all for nothing?!" 

Michael reached out with his free hand and put it on her shoulder to try and calm her down. He'd never seen her this angry. "Hey! Relax, it wasn't for nothing. My father is gone for good. Nothing can bring him back, if we get the Remnant off these, then..." He trailed off, not knowing how to explain what he really wanted.

"Then... Then what?" She asked, her hard grey gaze locked on him. "What are you going to do with them?"

Blue eyes met grey in an equal, steel hard lock. "I want to do something good with these. I want to create, not destroy like my father did. Fazbear Entertainment was left in your name, even if it's nothing now. That building William left has blueprints and pieces of every single animatronic ever built by our fathers." He explained to Charlie. "The pizzeria I had still has tons of animatronic parts inside that we could use. Not to mention being able to salvage what's left of Fazbear's Fright. Or any of the other old restaurants if they never got torn down. I can even find the scary ones he built, we can fix everything, make something beautiful instead of deadly."

She stared at him for only a few moments longer before looking down and shaking her head. "Why?" Charlie murmured. "Why bring them all back? The public's basically forgotten about everything now, why dredge it all back up? Why would you want to bring back the robot your father died in? Or your sister? Or..."

She couldn't finish the last question. He couldn't tell if she was asking about any form of the Puppet, or the robot who had crushed his baby brother's head in between its jaws.

"Because, your father set out to make a perfect safe place for kids-"

"And grown ups." She breathed, knowing the old motto by heart. Charlie had missed the old place she'd grown up in just as much as he did.

Michael snickered. "AND grown ups, to have fun, play, enjoy entertainment, and eat pizza." He lifted her chin to look at him. "And I wanna see that dream lived out. With all the characters too. All of them. Even the ones with some bad memories in need of washing. We can take all the bad things out of them!"

She gave a very sad smile. "Even if we could find them all, and put them together, you don't know where all the pieces are. Some were really broken, remember Withered Bonnie?"

Mike sighed heavily. "How could I forget? Besides, I like to call it... Extra charm. We just wouldn't let little kids see those ones. Teens and adults love to be frightened, and they would be nice to guests too! No bites, we would make them safe as could be! Even the Nightmares my father made!"

His father had made a 'special' brand of horrific animatronics, known as the Nightmares. He'd set them loose to try and torment and experiment on poor little Cassidy before Michael caught wind of it and fled with him to Henry's house. "We... We could give them plush teeth, make them silly and happy!"

He smiled as Charlie began to laugh, she was probably imagining one of those beasts trying to entertain a crowd. "Let's say you find them all, how are you going to make that work?" She asked. "You can't program, the only thing you can do is maintenance."

He took her soft hands into his own. "That's where you come in. We can work together to make something perfect. I'm strong from your father's experiments to heal me, and you are so very brilliant. We can make things right. You and I can do this, fix all the mistakes our fathers have made." He pleaded with her. "I want to do good, but I can't do it without you, Charlie."

She nodded, determination growing in those lovely grey eyes. "Okay. Together." She told him. "We'll take my father's truck and hit up Circus Baby's at dawn."


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Michael Afton is a simp, pass it on

Charlie sat on the kitchen counter, gazing out through the window as the darkness of night took over the world, with it coming the rainstorm that the TV had warned about swallowing everything in its soft peace and quiet. She drank warm tea, listening to the radio nearby as Michael worked away at her leg, making sure it was okay.

He cared for her. She could make some repairs and changes on her own, but he liked to do it. She didn't mind, it gave them more peaceful silence to sit in.

"I feel bad." Charlie muttered, looking away from the window and putting her tea down on the counter.

Michael looked up from her leg, eyes wide with concern. "What do you mean, am I hurting you?"

"No." She shook her head. "I just mean... You help me, I feel like I don't do anything for you."

He gave a throaty laugh, patting her foot. "No, Charlie. Believe me, your presence is healing." He told her, going back to work. "You gave me hope, that I could do something good. I mean, look at me, I don't look like I'm rotting anymore."

Charlie snickered. "Yeah, because my father fixed you up with something after you puked out robotic spaghetti." She watched him work at the tiny mechanisms inside her leg. 

He held up a finger. "True, that is a good point. But I had you around, I don't think I would have healed as much as I did without someone who understood me." He closed up her leg, resealing it the way Henry had taught him too. No one could tell that Charlie wasn't human.

Michael helped her off the counter, Charlie shivering a bit at how cold his hands were at her sides. Working on her legs was one thing, but it really felt like pieces of ice up against her artificial ribs. She had sensors all over her body, some more sensitive than others. "Sorry." Michael murmured, his head pointing down now in shame.

She shook her head. "Don't be. Come on, let's get ready for bed, we have to be up before sunrise tomorrow." She walked down the hall. From the corner of her eye she could see Michael's reflection in the glass of the frame her family pictures were in. His fluffy dyed black hair nearly covered one of his lovely blue eyes, hiding the scar above it. There were scars on his throat, jaw, on the bridge of his nose, even one on his lip from where someone had punched him in the face years ago and busted his lip. He hated his appearance, preferring to live in shadows and hide himself away from the world. There was a long one on his belly from Henry working to fix him from the inside.

Charlie wondered if things would be different if her father had stepped in sooner. If he had seen the way Cassidy and Michael cowered before their father and done something before it had been too late. Had stepped in to help raise them after their mother died. 

"We could have grown up normal..." She whispered as she sat on their bed, slipping her bra off from underneath her shirt and throwing it aside to the tiny laundry pile in the bedroom they shared. There were 2 beds in the house but sleeping in her father's old bed felt wrong, and as she didn't want her companion to sleep on the couch, she and Michael slept in the same one. No issue. It definitely wasn't because she was too anxious to sleep alone.

He laughed, running a hand through his hair to show off his other eye, along with the scar right above it.

Apparently that one was just from "typical teenage boy being a dumbass". Whatever that was.

"Charlie. Us? Normal?" He sat beside her. "The most normal we could ever be is playing music in your dad's old house in the garage."

She buried her face into her hands and groaned. "Ugh, god, don't remind me." Charlie looked up at him. 

They had been young, Michael living with them again, having just left his job at certain Freddy Fazbear's Pizza after the "Bite Of '87". They were teenagers, angry with the world, and wanting to play some rock music. Charlie played drums, Michael played guitar. Both could sing, too. That was probably the most normal they could be and even then, Charlie was still an android at the time.

"Come on, you big goof. We should get some sleep." She laid down in the bed, nestling into her pillow, closing her eyes to let Michael change into pajamas. She felt the weight on the bed shift as he eventually got onto it, getting quite a bit close to her. Charlie turned and glared a little.

"No. Your side." She huffed. Michael frowned.

"Please? Just for tonight?" He asked, wanting to hold onto her.

"Michael your body feels like an iceberg's asscrack and I am not turning on the heater in July. Stay on your side of the bed."

He chuckled softly and scooted over to his side, the two quickly falling asleep with the sound of the rain outside. "Fair enough. Blanket hog." Charlie rolled her eyes, smiling softly and letting herself drift off to sleep as Michael turned out the lamp.

Soon, their hunt for the remains of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza would begin.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> These two deserve soft mornings.

Michael awoke before the sun rose. His companion still sleeping peacefully. It was odd to see her sleep, self charging as she laid still and quiet, only the rare breath coming from her on occasion. Charlie claimed to still be able to feel things in her sleep though, and apparently she could dream. Her brown hair looked slightly messy, short enough that it no longer reached her shoulders from her last haircut. He preferred her short hair, it made her happier. Sort of... Cute.

He shook that thought from his brain. No, no way, he wasn't going to think like that about Charlie.

Michael felt like she could use a little extra rest though, they could wait another few minutes. He sighed and covered her up more, not wanting her to wake up from being cold.

He wished his body wasn't so cold to the touch. Michael never felt the cold himself, of course, but last night it would have been nice to snuggle up to Charlie. Last night had been rough, his thoughts plagued with his family.

Cassidy's blood spraying onto him. Elizabeth's taunting hiss about a family reunion while she searched for him through the last pizzeria.  
William begging for Mike and Henry to help him as he burned to ash.

He shook his head again to try and get rid of the images and sounds from his mind. Charlie groaned in her sleep softly, and Michael realized that he had unwillingly taken her blanket away from gripping it so hard. Frowning, he very gently tucked her back in, letting her sleep just a little more. Apparently she had a hard time sleeping as well. He could only imagine what walked through her dreams.

He walked out of the room, standing in the kitchen and looking around. Michael wished he could eat and drink. A coffee would be really nice right now. Although... Maybe the smell would wake him up. He just had to remember where it was kept, though. He looked through smaller cupboards, including ones lower to the floor. He had found Charlie's tea stash, and he knew she drank coffee too... Where was it?

"Come on..." Michael huffed as he climbed up onto a counter to get a better look into the higher cupboards. "She's 5 foot zip, she can't even reach up here!"

"Well excuse me, we can't all be behemoths." A voice snapped from behind him. Charlie stood in the doorway of the kitchen, leaning on it, staring at him.

Her sudden voice had startled Mike though, who jumped and toppled off the counter, now laying in a heap on the floor. "Ow..." He muttered, staring up at her. She lent him a hand and pulled him to his feet with ease.

Sometimes he forgot just how physically strong she was. She almost never used her strength, Mike had the feeling it scared her a little. 

"Thanks." He said as she looked up at him. 

"What were you even doing up there? You don't eat." She asked, looking up to the cupboard and watching as he closed it back up. Charlie went over to their fridge, grabbing some eggs and butter to make herself her own breakfast. 

"If you must know, I was looking for coffee. I figured the smell of it might wake me up since we have to go soon. Though I suppose falling like that did the trick..." He explained, watching as Charlie quickly shoved the food back into the fridge, looking at the time with wide eyes. It was almost half past 6, they needed to get going now. She ran down the hall, cursing quietly. "Are you not going to eat?!" Michael called after her.

"No! We have to go now! Get dressed!" She shouted from their bedroom. Michael rushed in after her, his eyes kept away from her as he grabbed his own shirt and a pair of shorts. He still wasn't used to being able to freely wear shorts, having always covered himself up until Henry had almost completely fixed his body. 

He felt bad, he knew she really needed breakfast. Food and water helped power her body. And she had the ability to taste food, eggs were her favorite... 

Michael grabbed his wallet off the coffee table when he went out into the living room, Charlie tying the laces on her shoes. He was driving, and he had a little extra money still, he could get her some breakfast. 

The two left the house and went down the old wooden steps, keeping quiet as they got into Henry's old truck. He had left it to Michael to use. Charlie herself didn't like driving anymore, but Michael liked it a lot. The two drove through town, Charlie yawning as she looked sleepily at all the buildings they passed by. A few cafes were already opening, along with the grocery store. The sun was already beginning to rise, bathing Hurricane in soft golden light. The young man pulled into the driveway of a cafe.

"Mike?" Charlie asked, but he held up a finger, shushing her.

"Hi, one order of eggs benedict, please, and a medium cinnamon apple tea." Michael ordered, watching as Charlie's soft cheeks colored pink. He grinned as he saw a faint smile grace her features as he pulled up to the window and took the styrofoam container holding her food, passing her the warm drink.

"You didn't have to do that, y'know." She murmured, trying not to smile. 

Michael nodded and shrugged. "I know I didn't have to. I wanted to."

After getting her breakfast, Michael got back to driving, going along until Hurricane was a dot in his rear view mirror. Charlie ate happily, watching out the window as they passed by a small farm, some fields, and finally turned onto a dirt road. 

The facility was mostly hidden away underground, Michael remembered. He suppressed a shudder as they pulled up to the building. "This is it." He murmured, looking down at Charlie, who had finished her breakfast and was staring at the building now. A large structure that nature had begun to reclaim. "It's safe, don't worry." He tried to reassure her as he looked around the small groups of pine trees that managed to hide what was left here.

Michael got out of the car, Charlie following him quickly, and the two headed down into the remains of Circus Baby's Pizza World.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Introducing our first animatronic!

It was dark, that was for sure. Charlie kept her hand on Michael's shoulder as he held their flashlight tight. "The lift should still work. It worked last time I was here."

She took the flashlight from him and shone it into his backpack, which he had suddenly slung off his shoulder and began to dig through. "Now, promise me you won't laugh, please?"

The short woman stared up at Michael, an eyebrow raised. "Why would I laugh? Did you forget something?"

He shook his head and held a small card up in the light. "See, you need official ID to get in. The scanner still works, but... There was an issue, when I registered my name." He sighed a little before shoving the card under the small scanner, that after a moment gave a small beeper of acceptance.

The sound system, though glitching badly, managed to sputter to life. "W-welco-come, Eggs B-Benedict."

Charlie wheezed and and snorted, causing Michael to glare at her, his pale face turning a shade of pink. "You said you wouldn't laugh!"

"How do you screw up that bad?!"

"It's not my fault! The keypad was glitchy!" He tried to defend himself as Charlie fell into a fit of giggles, doubling over and holding her knees. "Goodness, I think that's the happiest I've ever seen you." He said with amusement as Charlie fell onto her knees. "Well, if you're ever feeling down, I guess whispering 'eggs benedict' in your ear will do the trick."

Charlie shook her head, wiping tears from her eyes and grabbing Michael's hand to pull herself back up. "Please don't, you might kill me." She laughed. 

Sticking close to Michael, the two got on the elevator, their spirits high and the mood easy. Of course, the glitching bongo music was odd, but it could have been worse. The elevator shuddered to a halt in front of what looked like a ventilation shaft. "This is the best way in, I swear." Michael scratched the back of his neck. "You're not claustrophobic, right?"

She shook her head, but Charlie had the feeling she was about to be.

The vent creaked as they made their way through. Michael had offered to go first, make sure things were still okay since his last trip. Apparently some parts of the floor here were starting to break down after years of the building falling into disrepair.

Fiddling with the light switch once they got out, Charlie flinched a bit as sickly green lights sparked to life, flickering a bit. "This was my old office here." Michael pointed out, "We have to go through the Funtime Gallery, then get into the Scooping Room, then see if we can get unti the back office, I need something from there too."

She nodded, following Michael once again through the vents and into the pitch black area that supposedly was 'home' to Funtime Foxy and Freddy. The floor was discolored where Michael shone the light, the gross brown shade of dried blood. She kept quiet, seeing Michael tense up, this was obviously bringing back some bad memories. Charlie held his hand once more in her own, giving it a gentle but firm squeeze.

"Here we are... I hid the chips inside of one of them. Be careful, the floor is starting to creak here too." 

She helped him out with the searching, ignoring the now rusted piece of machinery that had practically gutted her best friend. A small rectangular object brushed her finger as she dug around, gazing at the empty shells in the pale light from the flashlight held in the middle of the room.

It was so strange, seeing the empty husks of the once lively Funtimes, she remembered footage of them performing that Michael had shown her years ago when he'd been hired here originally. They would be taking most of them pieces with them of course, the two were strong enough to carry boxes filled with the parts needed.

She pulled the object out from Bon Bon's body, holding it up to the light. Michael grinned at her. "There they are! I couldn't remember if I had put them into Bon Bon or Ballora, quick, grab them!" His eyes shone with excitement.

Prying open the blue plastic and scooping up the small chips, each about an inch long, and quite thin, Charlie handed them carefully to Michael, who stuffed them into his pocket. "Perfect, this is perfect, Charlie, this is first step to our wonderful future, I can already feel it." 

He hugged her tightly, and Charlie felt her artificial heart flutter in her chest as she hugged him back.

"What were you saying about the back office earlier?" She asked as the two pulled away from each other, recollecting the flashlight and starting to put the animatronic parts into the folded boxes Michael had brought along. 

"We need to go inside it. Some of my father's blueprints are inside. Unused animatronics, and tech never finished. Some are worth keeping, but some... I want to destroy." 

Charlie could reason with that. Many of William's designs were actually good. He had been the one to suggest some small things for the original animatronics, like Chica's bib, Freddy's bowtie, and Foxy having an eyepatch. Small things that gave characters more life. He was creative, it was such a shame he had used it for evil.

Seeing an door marked as "W. Afton", Charlie took a step forward to try the handle, seeing as it was what they were headed to. But, unfortunately, the door didn't open. 

"You need a key card if I remember correctly." Michael explained, holding his own up to the very tiny scanner on the wall. He frowned when a small buzz could be heard. "Wha..? But... I thought he would've..." 

"Would've let you in?" Charlie asked, "Doubt it, he probably made it for himself only." She growled. "Well, any ideas?"

"We need another way in... You try and see if there's a ventilation shaft, I'll look for another key, maybe he hid it in Baby..." Michael rambled a bit before he turned to her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "But, please Charlie, do be safe."

"I always am." Charlie replied, patting his cold fingers.

Using her very limited night vision, Charlie looked around the top of the walls for any vents, as well as anything on the bottom. Her night vision was experimental, and she couldn't use it for long without her her head starting to hurt, but it was useful. She grinned when she spotted a small vent just within reach. Jumping up, Charlie was able to grab the metal grate and rip it clean off, using her strength entirely to do so, unfortunately falling straight to the floor like a tossed stone. The grate had cone clean off the wall though.

She hated doing that, it always made her feel less human to do things like using her full strength. Seeing in the dark was one thing, ripping welded metal bolts out of walls was another. 

Jumping up again, she groaned. The vent had large fan blades, before only going upwards. Must have been a cooling unit.

Charlie jumped down onto the floor with a heavy slam, her eyes widening as the floor seemed to shake under her feet, creaking loudly.

"Charlie? Are you okay?" Michael called out at her, his flashlight shining over, blinding her a bit.

A deafening crack filled the air, and Charlie felt herself freeze as she felt the floor under her shake a little.

The floor under her feet crumbled, the old metal and wood finally giving way to the room below, an old testing area. 

Michael let out an agonized scream as he watched Charlie fall into the darkness below.

\--

A soft groan could be heard as Charlie sat up at the bottom of a pile of scrap metal. Her body ached horribly, something she definitely wasn't used to. Judging by the fact that she had rolled without ripping her clothes or injuring her skin, her best guess was that she had landed on a pile of old, smooth animatronic casings and sheets or metal.

The android stood up slowly, her knees shaking as she tried to look around for anything to grab onto, but to no avail. She grasped at the wall she'd rolled over to, her hand grazing a loose panel, a light flickering on it for just a moment before leaving her in the pitch black again.

"Hello?!" Charlie shouted into the darkness, fumbling around through the twisted scrap metal, trying to find an exit. "Michael? Can you hear me?!" She began to shake a little. It was cold, and so dark she could barely make out the outline of her hands in front of her face. "Anyone?"

"All systems online"

Charlie called out again. "Seriously, anyone?!" If this was someone's idea of a joke, she might actually strangle them. But... The door had been sealed, only Michael could have gotten in, which meant that....

"Ha ha ha h-ha ha.... I think I-I-I hear a b-birthday gir-girl!" A shrill voice filled the room, along with the screeching of rusted metal scraping against itself. Seemed Michael hadn't found every chip after all. "Birthday girl n-nee-need's a biii-i-ig hug if she's a-all alo-lone!"

"Oh, anyone but you."

Charlie stared up as a few broken lights flickered on, showing the creature standing before her.

A large, tall fox, only half finished. Its lower face plates were missing, as was a large chunk of its arm and side, both eyes gone as well, leaving empty sockets with little white pinpricks. It twitched, trying to stand at it's full height, no matter how much its limbs and head fought the motion. Its "fur" for lack of better term, was mostly white, with purple and orange parts throughout.

Charlie suddenly felt very small. She backed away from the animatronic, hiding in the scrap metal, waiting and hoping that it would forget about her and return to resting, so she could get away.

It didn't. 

Instead, it made it's way over to Charlie, who was now struggling not to hyperventilate, or straight up burst into tears.

"Y-you seem lo-lost!" It practically roared. "Why is t-the birthday girl up-up-upset? Does she n-need a fr-riend?"

It lowered its large body to rest the half finished snout on her lap. "I-I am a friend t-to all! I'm s-sorry if I s-scared yo-you." Its empty eyes staring into her own.

A sweet scent filled the air, like cotton candy. Charlie reached her shaking hand downwards and slowly placed it onto the fox's snout. Its upper face plates gave a slight wiggle, the pinpricks moving downwards. It was... Happy. If it had ears, they would most definitely be wiggling as well. "M-My name is Lolbit." Their voice was still very loud, Charlie had a feeling that the volume had been cranked all the way up.

"Lolbit." Charlie echoed, giving the fox more attention. "Why weren't you finished?"

Lolbit made a sad noise. "They preferred F-Funtime Foxy over m-me. I d-don't mind, but I w-want to entertain!" They explained.

Charlie nodded, trying to stand up. Lolbit got up, able to take the cue from her moving her legs. "I'll get you out of here, I promise. Me and my partner will fix you up, and you'll entertain children with all the others." 

Lolbit let out a joyful cry, taking her hands into their own. "Oh th-thank you! You're the b-best!" Their slightly rusted body was shaking with joy as they nodded. "Y-yes, I w-want to play wi-with p-people! There is a-a way into-to an old office, but I-I don't like go-going alone!"

Charlie gave a grin and looked around the room, finding a large vent shaft that, while a bit beaten up, could definitely fit them both.

"Perfect."


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lolbit is a good noodle  
> Also Mike please do not destroy your dad's facility

Michael shook as tears slipped down his face. She'd looked so scared as the floor cracked open to swallow her up. 

"Charlie...." He fought for breath, slowly moving towards the broken part of the floor. The hole hadn't been very big, mostly just a few feet around, Charlie's sudden weight shift must have caused the cracks to widen. She could change her weight at will by flooding her metal bones with her blood, she must have done it involuntarily out of frustration.

His hands shook as he tried to shine his light down the hole without getting too close, not wanting to be its next victim. It was no use, however, he couldn't get close enough to actually see down it.

Which made it all the worse when he could hear an electronic voice declaring that some of the systems down there were back online. And Michael could have sworn he'd heard her voice calling out for him.

But that had to be a good sign, right? That had to mean that Charlie had somehow activated something through movement or sound. Lights were starting to turn in now here too, the old ventilation system slowly coming to life again. The old place was waking up again. 

Michael inched as close as he could, only being able to hear faint voices. Charlie was calling out, afraid and trapped down in this horrid place all alone. 

Another voice joined her that made his mind turn into a blank slate, his blood running colder. 

One of those beasts was down there with her.

Mustering his fear up and turning it to blind rage at the thought of her being hurt or killed, the tall man slammed his fists as hard as he could into the door to his father's office, over and over and over...

"Fuck you!" He screamed. "This is your fault! Everything is your fault! Why can't you leave us alone?! Why won't you die?! I'm trying to fix your mess, and all I get is my only friend in danger because you and your stupid murder-bots won't just fucking DIE ALREADY!"

By the time Michael slumped into a sobbing mess on the floor, the door had sizable holes, and was beginning to come off its hinges.

He looked up, wiping his face on his sleeves and sniffling, his hands shaking and starting to bleed a little. Only a little though. He didn't have much blood, and it wasn't the real stuff anyways.

Picking up his flashlight, which he had dropped before beating his fists on the door, Michael took a deep, shuddering breath and went into the room, hoping and praying there was a way down into the lower floor. 

Quickly, he snatched up the blueprints that were hidden away in his father's desk. Inside along with them was a small picture of the family that had once been his. 

William, Bernadette, Cassidy, Elizabeth, and Michael. They had been happy once. Not long, but enough to make him nostalgic. 

Bernadette Afton. His mother, she had been so kind, so loving and sweet... But so very frail. Michael had cried for days and days after she'd passed away, stricken with illness that ravaged her quicker than any doctor could hope to catch up with.

Her last days had been at home, bedridden, William tending to her every need until one morning, he had woken up to her coughing and fighting for breath for the final time. He remembered being called into the room to say goodbye, holding his little sister in his arms, Cassidy beside him, clinging to him and begging him to explain what was happening. 

Michael held his mother's hand as she passed away. It was the only time he had ever seen his father cry.

He shook his head of the memories. He needed to focus on what was going on. Looking around the office, Michael noticed 3 tiny monitors sitting on the desk, inactive. Beside them was what looked like some kind of... Baby monitor? No, no it had a dial on it.... It didn't matter. The batteries inside were leaking too badly for it to work anyways. Stacks of papers were scattered around the room, some intact but some were ripped, some where nothing but shreds.

Nothing else was here, the only choice he had now was to search the halls in this back hidden area. The other side of the office also had a door, not unlike the office he had once worked in at an old Freddy's.

Holding himself together as best he could, Michael ventured further into the darkness, his flashlight gripped so tightly that he feared it would break.

He heard a soft banging sound and pressed himself against the wall.

Someone, or something, was coming.

\--

Charlie clung to Lolbit as the animatronic fox crawled slowly through the vent. She was exhausted, simply wanting to go home again and rest. 

Lolbit's claws hooked seamlessly on the bolts and crevasses of the vents, as if they were made for crawling around inside them.

She didn't dare look down, the thought of it made her want to shake. These old vents made her nervous now, every little creak making her cling tighter to the robotic fox.

"Are y-you scared, birthday girl? I-I can pl-play music i-if you'd like!"

Charlie shook her head, simply giving Lolbit a little pat with her finger. "Nope, no no, I'm very much good." She shut her eyes tightly and took a deep breath. Lolbit wouldn't drop her, they must have done this many times, everything was going to be okay.

She felt Lolbit come up a corner, now having Charlie on their back as they crawled normally instead of straight up. "Al-almost there!" They chirped, twitching a bit and coming down towards a lower vent.

Charlie closed her eyes tight as light poured in from the open vent, Lolbit slinking out of it and into a small office room. "Here w-w-we are, my fr-riend!"

Shaking a bit, Charlie steadied herself properly on the floor, eager to get off of Lolbit and onto at least semi-stable ground. "Thank you."

The animatronic beeped and wiggled their faceplates happily, clearly overjoyed to be helping someone. 

It was incredibly hard to see in the dark, but Charlie saw a tiny glimmer of light cast nearby. "Michael?" She called out, though barely having any time to get the word out fully before the man rushed down the hall, his flashlight shining bright as he sprinted at her.

"Charlie! Oh, oh thank goodness you're safe, I thought I'd lost you." Michael grabbed onto Charlie and pulled her into a very tight hug, her head being slightly pushed into his neck, his cheek resting on the top of her head and nuzzling into her messy hair. The two stood in silence for a but as the tall man held her and rocked the two of them ever so slightly.

The two felt a large metal wire wrap around them, pulling then closer together. Charlie was able to peek a glimpse at the fox animatronic, who was now extending the metal in their body to hug the two. She gave the sweet creature a serene little grin.

Michael, understandably, was much less clam about it. "Uh... W... What is this?" He mumbled quietly. "What is it doing?" 

"I'm Lolbit!" Came the overly loud happy chirp. "I li-live here!"

He nodded slightly before looking down at Charlie to whisper to her as Lolbit's attention was now drawn to a small blinking light. "I didn't know... Didn't think there were more."

She took a step back, shaking her head. "Just them. They were decommissioned before even being finished. I don't even think they have a proper name, just took some letters from papers to make a new word. But they want to entertain, make friends with humans."

"Well, then I guess all we have to do is repairs. They'll be perfect."

"Wait!" Squealed Lolbit, rushing over to the two. "Y-you know MY na-name, but I-I-I don't know yours! I can't b-be your friend if I don't-don't know your n-names!"

The two simply nodded. "Charlie, and Michael." The brunette told the robot, who wiggled excitedly. "Now, let's get you home."


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Something to know. I like slamming people with angst.

"Alright, so all we need is to clear out the building, clean it up, and we should be fine. We'll need a construction crew but that's okay, we have the money for it." Charlie observed as she gazed out the car window while Michael read off something on his phone. "Part of the building... Collapsed, but I think it's relatively okay, all things considered." 

She steeled her nerves. The thought of clearing away the rubble and finding her father's body was anything but pleasant, but it had been months, and his hiding place in the building had been completely destroyed. There was a lower floor in the building, but it had only ever been for storage, nothing would be there. The animatronics had been in the center, with the dangerous ones in specific, walled off hallways, all of which had been completely scorched.

She stepped out of the car and sighed as she walked up to the burned building. Memories of that horrible night flashed in Charlie's brain.

...

...

It had been a dark, gloomy night, no stars shining down, no moonlight to light up the empty highway Charlie had been driving her van on. 

She couldn't stay, she felt. Not after knowing what her father's plan was. Burning down the last Freddy's was one thing, that was fine, that wasn't what bothered her. 

Gathering all of the last animatronics wasn't what bothered her either. Well, not precisely. 

It was the puppet, or what was left of it. Was it wrong to be jealous of the thing? Maybe. But envious rage burned inside her when she caught her father making recordings to it. Talking to a tiny replica, a little stuffed doll that had once been sold at Freddy's for a few dollars was now being spoken to like a tiny child.

"My darling," Henry had cooed softly. "I'm sorry I ever let anything happen to you. I still love you, my precious daughter, my whole world. My sweet baby, I couldn't save you then, but I promise... I will keep you safe now."

He had held the doll close to his heart, smiling sadly, as Charlie slipped silently out of the room unseen, his medication in her one hand, the other clapped over her mouth as sobs threatened to escape, tears running down her cheeks as she dropped the pill bottle and rushed into her room.

No, Charlotte's room. It was a room made for a little girl that was never coming home. A clean bowl for the replacement goldfish. He still loved that little girl he'd lost, so much so that he was willing to put Michael and himself in danger just to lure her back again. 

She sank to the floor, pulling her knees up close and burying her face down into her legs. Charlie let a sob shake her body as she sat. If he still loved that little girl so much, why had he even built her? She obviously wasn't a good enough replacement. If she died or disappeared, he could just build another one of her, couldn't he? 

If she wasn't his daughter, what was she?

Who was she?

...

A few more horrid nights went by, Henry crying with joy when Lefty finally turned up with the Puppet inside. Charlie had cried and packed her bags, prepared to run off again.

If he wanted to be with his real daughter, she would let him.

Then, she had gotten the message. An odd disc with her name on it had been placed on her dashboard, one of her father's. Assuming he simply put a few songs into it for her as a little present, she put it in and hit play. After all, he had done so before... But this wasn't it.

"Hello, Charlie." Said Henry, making her do a slight double take. "If you are hearing this, it means that this week has come to an end. Michael's job was to gather all the remaining souls into one place, and he has done it flawlessly."

"Now, you're probably wondering why I'm telling you this. Well... Charlie, as you know, we plan to set the building ablaze to free the Souls trapped within."

She had nodded along, not enjoying where this was going.

"Charlotte... I'm going with them."

Charlie had slammed her foot on the brake.

"I have taken a spot within the building, and left this disc to you. I had a bad feeling you would leave tonight, what with you being so distant lately. I just wish our goodbye could be in person. Unfortunately, I'm not so good with goodbyes."

"Dad..."

"I would love for you to stay, but my true wish is for you to be happy. That is all I have ever wanted, for you, my angel, to be happy."

She shook her head, turning her van around as fast as humanly possible. 

"If you decide to stay, which you may, I have left you everything I own. Fazbear Entertainment, or rather, what's left of it, will be in your name, the house and all of my money belongs to you. I'm... Sorry that I couldn't be there for you as much as I would like."

Charlie pressed her foot so hard on the gas that she was slightly out of her seat. 

"Please, Charlie, know that I love you. I've always loved you. You'll always be my little girl."

"Daddy..."

"By now, the building should be burning down, with all of us inside. Michael has been given a way out however. I have let him take up residence in the house as well. Please, Charlie, stay with him, or take him with you. You know how to heal wounds he may have, and I've taught him how to fix your body should something go wrong. Take care of each other."

"NO!" Charlie screamed. "I ONLY WANT YOU TO DO IT!" She struggled to take in air as she raced down the highway. "Daddy PLEASE don't leave me!"

"I love you, Charlie. More than I have ever loved anyone. Goodbye."

Smoke was rising up ahead, but just as she saw it, a large deer jumped out onto the road.

Swerving to not hit it, Charlie let her car screech into a small ditch, getting out and racing down the road towards the burning building.

She heard a small coughing, looking around frantically and seeing Michael leaving the hellish scene through a small back door, panting heavily and looking up to the now openly wailing girl, rushing over to her.

"Charlie, oh god, I'm so sorry, I'm so so sorry..." He held her tightly, letting her cry into his scorched outfit. The stood together in the parking lot until the fire trucks came down to put out what was left of the building.

He held her until she had no more tears to shed, until the parking lot no longer glowed orange, and until the sun had long since peaked over the horizon and Charlie struggled to stay awake. Even then, he had carried her to her van, driven home, carried her to her bed and held her while she slept. Michael wouldn't let go until she was ready for him to.

**Author's Note:**

> Please leave a comment if you liked it!


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